


Sleeping Habits

by Blizzard_Fire



Series: Brucemas 2020 [1]
Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: Bonding, Bruce Banner Has Issues, Bruce Banner-centric, Comfort No Hurt, Gen, Laboratories, Post-Avengers (2012), Tony Stark Has Issues
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-14
Updated: 2020-12-14
Packaged: 2021-03-09 23:07:53
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,812
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27994257
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Blizzard_Fire/pseuds/Blizzard_Fire
Summary: Bruce sleeps in the lab. Tony finds out.
Relationships: Bruce Banner & Tony Stark
Series: Brucemas 2020 [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2020373
Comments: 11
Kudos: 61
Collections: Brucemas 2020





	Sleeping Habits

**Author's Note:**

> Happy Brucemas!!! I'm co-running this thing with the lovely Panda365 - this is an 8-day event, with each day dedicated to a different Bruce ship and some optional prompts. (Have a look at the [guidelines](https://brucemas.tumblr.com/) if you're interested - there's still time to participate!) I'll be posting every day this week so stay tuned!
> 
> Day 1: Bruce/Tony, Lab
> 
> Science Bros is such a classic pairing. The lab is a main staple of a lot of their fic, so it seemed fitting to start with something familiar.

It was a relief when Tony finally said, ‘Shit, it’s 3am. We should probably get some shut-eye.’

‘Wouldn’t want to be tired for tomorrow’s press conference,’ said Bruce wryly, pulling off his safety goggles. Things had been crazy since he’d moved in at Stark Tower: endless media attention, daily team training sessions and regular late-night science binges. At least in the lab it was calmer.

After they’d finished tidying up, Tony headed for the door. He paused when Bruce didn’t follow. ‘Evil geniuses need rest too, green bean.’

‘You go, I’m going to finish off a few things here.’

‘Okay. Don’t work too hard. G’night, big guy.’ And with a final wave he left.

Once the sound of Tony’s footsteps had faded, Bruce counted to one hundred then looked up. ‘JARVIS?’

_‘Mister Stark is in his quarters, Doctor. Would you like me to lock the lab?’_

‘Please.’

There was a clunk as the electronic locks engaged, and then Bruce let out a long sigh, the tension lifting from his shoulders. He walked into the storage cupboard and took out the rucksack hidden behind a box of petri dishes. Then he headed over to the lab sink and brushed his teeth.

There was a cream-coloured couch in the corner where he and Tony sometimes ate lunch. He crouched down and pulled out a crumpled sleeping bag.

 _‘Doctor,’_ said JARVIS hesitantly, _‘if your quarters are not to your liking, I am sure Mister Stark could – ‘_

‘They’re fine JARVIS, thank you.’ His stomach twisted with guilt. His apartment was lovely, and it was a great place to get some quiet time, but he couldn’t sleep there.

It was hardly the most uncomfortable couch he’d slept on, though the imitation leather was cold and stuck to his cheek if he didn’t move for a while. JARVIS dimmed the lights to half-brightness.

Laboratories had been the one constant in Bruce’s life. They were safe places, where he could be free of his problems for a while. Whilst this was the nicest lab he’d slept in, it wasn’t the first by far.

Bruce's gaze drifted over the blinking standby lights of monitors and lab equipment until the gentle hum of the computers lulled him to sleep.

A loud scratching at the door jolted him awake. ‘Who’s that?’ he said groggily, heart pounding.

 _‘Apologies Doctor, but I cannot deny access.’_ The electronic locks disengaged, and Bruce’s stomach lurched.

The doors slid open. Standing behind them was the Iron Man suit, the eyes glowing like torches in the dark.

Bruce stood up quickly, trying not to look as if he’d just been sound asleep. ‘Hey, Tony. Has something happened? Code green?’

Tony just stood there, staring at him. With Bruce’s sleep-addled mind on full alert, it was unnerving.

‘I’m sorry about the lab - I had a few things to finish so...’ He wrung his hands, sensing silent disapproval. Did Tony know that he hadn’t slept in his own room in weeks? Dozens of possibilities flitted through his mind. Was Tony angry? Offended? Would he kick Bruce out for taking advantage of his generosity?

Tony slowly walked towards him, the suit whirring with each heavy step.

‘Please say something,’ Bruce murmured.

Tony came forward until he was just a few feet away… then turned away and wandered towards the other end of the lab. Now Bruce was starting to freak out. After nearly two months here, he’d never seen Tony angry. He must have _really_ pissed him off it he wasn’t talking.

But Tony didn’t seem to have a particular destination in mind. He walked up to the opposite wall and stared at it with apparent concentration, then he fumbled along the counter as though blind. ‘Have you seen it?’ Tony asked finally.

‘Seen what?’

‘Had a jar of pickles. Very important. I put them right here…’

Bruce wandered over. ‘Is that really a priority at…?’

_‘3:42am, Doctor.’_

As Tony continued to search around for a jar of pickles that definitely wasn’t here, Bruce dared to come closer. ‘Hey Tony?’ When Tony didn’t respond, he waved a hand in front of his face. No response. ‘JARVIS, how do I open the helmet?’ If Tony had taken a drug of some kind, the suit could make him dangerous.

_‘There is an emergency release under the chin.’_

The metal was cold as he ran a finger along the underside of the helmet. He found the button and pressed it.

The faceplate popped open with a soft hiss. Tony’s eyes were unfocused but calm, though his gaze wandered vacantly over Bruce’s face. ‘You,’ he said. ‘You should know where the pickles are. You’re green. I should call you pickle jar. Don’t know why I never thought of that.’ His words slurred together. All the while, he continued to slide his hands along the worktop as if a jar would magically appear.

Bruce couldn’t smell any alcohol on his breath. ‘JARVIS, what’s he taken?’ His condition didn’t seem serious, but you never knew. And Tony already had an arc reactor in his chest to contend with…

_‘The only thing Sir has recently consumed was a banana smoothie, seven hours ago.’_

‘Then why is he like this?’

_‘I believe he is sleepwalking, Doctor.’_

With a clumsy swipe, Tony knocked a glass beaker off the counter. The crash was deafening and Tony’s slack expression turned panicked. He stumbled and raised an arm, the repulsor glowing blue as it charged a shot –

‘Tony, it’s me! You’re safe.’ Bruce held out his hands, backing away.

‘Bruce?’ Tony looked around in puzzlement. ‘How did I get here?’

‘You were sleepwalking. Apparently.’ Now Bruce’s heart was going way too fast. He walked over to the couch and sat down, taking deep breaths. It was hard to stay calm when his one safe place had been invaded.

A few minutes later, Tony sat down beside him. The couch groaned alarmingly. ‘Shit, maybe I should lose the suit first.’ With apparent reluctance, he opened it up and climbed out. The suit walked off to stand in the furthest corner of the room and powered down. ‘Sorry buddy, must have given you a scare.’ He smiled sadly, sitting down again.

‘It was… unexpected,’ Bruce agreed shakily. ‘How did you fall asleep in the suit?’

Tony looked away, running a hand through his hair. ‘It may have uh, been intentional. Little bit. Fighting aliens and nearly dying in space has strange effects on your sleep quality, who knew.’

Bruce blinked. Now that he looked closer, Tony looked drawn and pale – and more than a little sheepish. ‘You should install an anti-sleepwalk protocol,’ he suggested, only half-joking.

 _‘I second that idea,’_ JARVIS agreed.

‘Yeah, waking up half a mile above New York could get interesting real fast.’ Tony yawned and stretched. ‘What are you doing here, anyway?’ He looked down. ‘Is this a sleeping bag?’

Bruce was grateful that the darkness hid his blush. ‘It was just a – a temporary thing,’ he blurted. But Tony was already standing up, looking around the lab. Bruce had left his toothbrush by the sink, a novel on top of the medical encyclopaedias… when one looked closer, the evidence was all around.

‘If your room sucks, I can always change it. I could throw up some neon wall lights, Enterprise style. You name it, it’s yours.’

‘It’s not that.’ Bruce sighed. ‘I haven’t been sleeping well. Having a h – a routine, staying in one place… I’m just not sure how to be a person anymore. The lab…’ He laughed at himself. ‘Well, it makes me feel safe.’ Bedrooms were too quiet, too vulnerable. So many times, soldiers had broken in to attack him in his sleep, or thrown gas grenades through the window. ‘I’m very grateful Tony, but it’s just something about it…’

Tony frowned. ‘Hey, I don’t care. My place is your place, you can crash wherever you want. I’m just glad you chose to stay.’

Even so, he was embarrassed. ‘It’s been a lot to adjust to,’ he said finally. ‘Sometimes I think I’ll never catch up on everything I’ve missed. When you’ve spent over a decade in survival mode, that programming doesn’t just go away.’

Tony watched him contemplatively. The light of the arc reactor glowed through his t-shirt, illuminating his soft expression. ‘JARVIS?’

_‘Sir.’_

‘This lab is now off limits to everyone except Doctor Banner here. Anyone else wants in, they’ve got to go through him. Myself included.’

_‘Understood.’_

Bruce frowned. ‘But you need to work in here, this isn’t _my_ lab – ‘

‘If you want to invite me over for science slumber parties, that’s your call green bean.’ He smiled. ‘Lab’s yours. Make it your own.’

‘Are you serious?’

‘Hundred percent.’ Tony walked up to him. ‘I want you to be happy here. Just say the word if you want anything moving around, no biggie.’

A lump formed in Bruce’s throat. ‘Thank you. Really. I don’t know how I can repay you for all of this.’

‘Help me improve the repulsors sometime next week, we’ll call it even. Oh, and one thing – stand up a sec.’

As Bruce got up, Tony leaned over the couch and pulled a hidden catch. It unfolded into a pull-down bed.

Bruce laughed. ‘That would have come in handy earlier.’

‘I assumed we’d need it for lab naps, so technically I was right.’ He drifted towards the door. ‘I’ll let you get some sleep.’

‘Where will you go?’ Bruce asked.

‘Uh, I don’t want to wake Pepper up so probably the workshop. If Dum-E hasn’t covered my couch with sticky labels. Again.’ A shadow seemed to pass over Tony’s face. Bruce recognised the look of someone who was dreading the next few hours of attempted sleep.

Bruce unzipped the sleeping bag, turning it into a large blanket. ‘Room for two if you want company?’

Tony hesitated. ‘You sure? I don’t want to intrude on your space.’

Instead of replying, Bruce shuffled over on the couch and patted the space beside him.

It was a little cramped for two people, but after a few elbowed ribs and muttered apologies they lay side-by-side, with enough sleeping bag to cover them both. JARVIS re-engaged the locks and then there was silence except for the humming of machines and Tony’s slowing breaths.

It was nice to have company for once. Bruce hadn’t known Tony that long and yet their friendship felt so easy. He would always be grateful for sharing Tony’s home.

‘Gotta get you a better couch,’ Tony mumbled. ‘Leather’s too cold. Need something softer.’

‘As long as it’s not green,’ Bruce said with a smile. ‘By the way, when you came in here you were looking for a pickle jar.’

‘ _Really?_ I don’t remember any of that! I don’t even like pickles. I’m definitely making that your new nickname, though.’

Bruce felt himself beginning to drift off. ‘Night, Tony.’

‘Goodnight, pickle jar.’


End file.
